A Small Town in Southern Italy
by Emma CS Me
Summary: Mafia AU. Feliciano Vargas, a young businessman with wealthy adoptive parents, receives a letter from the man who raised him in an orphanage. It calls on him to return to his hometown, as the man is in trouble. So, as it turns out, are many people.
1. A Letter

**Author's** **Notes: **Ah, hello all! Yes, this is the beginning of another really long fic. And one I came up with the idea for myself! Anyway, the real point of this note is to add some **warnings**: as this is a Mafia fic, this will eventually feature crime in some detail. Character death, violence, blackmail/extortion, prostitution; these are all subjects that will raise their heads at one point or another. If any of that makes you uncomfortable, by all means, leave now.

...Also, everyone will be referred to by human names in this chapter. If characters do not have canonical human names, I will tell you who they are before the chapter. Oh, and everyone (or most people) are slightly Italian in this fic. They are probably speaking Italian unless I specify otherwise. As it is set in Italy.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 1: A Letter<strong>

"…So, what do you think?"

Ludwig sighs and tosses the letter to the side. "I don't know why you'd even bother showing me this."

"Ehhh?" Feliciano hurriedly grabs the letter. "Ludwig, don't be like that! Ve, what's wrong with it?"

"It's a transparent plea for money–"

"Well, yes but–"

"And frankly, I thought even you would have more common sense than this."

"Ludwig shut up!" Feliciano's face is getting all red in anger. "Don't be mean! You don't know what's going on okay? This isn't just some weird old guy asking me for money; this is Antonio and–"

"Feli, Feli it's okay; don't cry!" Ludwig is grabbing his hand and making Feliciano look at him; Feli didn't even notice he was crying. "I don't… blame you; I'm not angry, I just–"

Feliciano sniffles and Ludwig sighs. "I'm not going to convince you about this, am I?"

Still sniffling and annoyed, Feliciano shakes his head. "No. I mean… just read it Ludwig. He needs me. He raised me after–"

"I know, Feli." Ludwig suddenly takes his chin in hand. "It's just… With what happened to your family, and everything I've heard about that town; I don't… want you to get hurt if you go back there."

"…I won't," says Feliciano weakly. Ludwig sighs.

"Lord – what you lack in common sense, you… well you don't exactly make up in courage, but…"

Ludwig trails off, still staring at him. Feliciano stares back.

The hand falls and Ludwig coughs awkwardly. "Of course, Vater won't like it," he says.

Feliciano rolls his eyes. "Well duh. That's where you come in, Ludwig!"

"…Oh god."

"No no no it's all okay! See, all you have to do is tell Papa I've gone somewhere else!"

"…Where else?"

"Um… Anywhere else?"

Ludwig glares at him.

"It doesn't matter, okay! Just say I'm on business or something, I don't know."

Ludwig sighs again. "You haven't thought this through very well, have you?"

Feliciano pouts.

"…I'l think of something," Ludwig says, and Feliciano beams. "Vater will want to know where you are, though. You be careful of him too."

"Yessir!" Feliciano leaps up and throws his arms around Ludwig, hugging him tightly. "Thank you thank you thank you!"

"Erm, indeed…:" Ludwig mumbles as Feliciano happily kisses his cheeks. Feli giggles. Even though he's never been there, no-one's ever quite bred the German out of poor Ludwig. "Um, you know Feliciano, oxygen is typically considered part of a healthy lifestyle…"

"Huh, oh sorry!" Feliciano pulls back. "Ve – thank you Ludwig! I love you!"

Ludwig coughs again and sighs. "Feliciano… listen to me."

He blinks. He listens.

"…Promise me you'll take this seriously, alright?" Ludwig asks. "I meant what I said about how dangerous it is there. If anything happened to you…"

"Of course," says Feliciano, frowning. "Ve… You went there, like, once or twice Ludwig. I grew up there. I remember what it was like, and no, it wasn't easy. And that's – that's why I need to go back. Antonio needs me, and after everything he did for us, he deserves it."

"I see," says Ludwig, smiling. "Well, if you're that convinced, there's nothing I can say to persuade you otherwise."

"Hee. I always win."

"Indeed."

* * *

><p><em>Dear Feliciano,<em>

_Ah, hello! I know it must seem strange hearing from me, after all this time. It took me some work to track down your address, don't you worry! How are you?_

_Anyway. I know this may be a little too much to ask, but – would you mind visiting the old town sometime soon? Yes, I still live here! It's nothing to worry about, just I've had a few troubles lately and I was hoping you could help me out?_

_You were so cute when you were little… I've missed you, you know, and your brother. Have you spoken to him lately? We didn't really stay in touch when he left the orphanage; that was sad._

_I probably shouldn't waste any more of your time. Please write back soon, Feli! I'm waiting to hear from you!_

_Love, Antonio._

* * *

><p>"Hey."<p>

Romano scowls and looks up from his newspaper. "What do you want, jackass?"

Heracles rolls his eyes and sits next to him on the couch. "What are you reading?"

"Fuck off!"

A pause.

"We got contacted today."

The hairs of the back of Romano's neck stick up. "Really? What do the bastards want us to do now?"

"Nothing specific, just..." he trails off and Romano kind of hopes he's falling asleep again. No luck. "There was something... our friends in the post office found..."

"Spit it out already, dammit!" _Christ_ he's annoying.

Romano swears Heracles is smirking. "Your brother's coming here."

"...What."

Heracles definitely smirks.

This whole issue is suddenly interrupted by a plaintive, pleading "Meow?"

"Oh, for fuck's sake," grumbles Romano as Heracles smiles and takes the stupid ball of fluff into his arms. "Really? You just come in and drop that fucking bombshell on me and–"

"Shh, Romano. You're not the only person in the world who matters, you know."

Romano's stomach clenches and he balls his fists.

_That son of a bitch_.

"It's okay, Bella; I'll feed you soon." Heracles pokes at it's nose with a finger, and the kitten sniffs at it, before butting it's head against Heracles' hand.

"Stupid fucking name," Romano says. "It's not even that cute."

Heracles rolls his eyes. "I'm sure she's devastated."

"Just keep that thing out of my fucking room, okay? You know I have allergies. I will break it's neck, I mean it."

A pause.

"I see. Threatening a kitten. Dignified." Heracles plops her down, to get an irritated squawk. "To focus on what's actually relevant to you – they copied out the letter; I thought you'd might like to take a look..."

"Gimme that." Romano snatches it out of his hand. "Don't act like you give a fuck about my family or some bullshit, alright? This is your fault anyway."

Heracles sighs. "Fine then. Come along, Bella."

Romano scowls as the kitten follows Heracles out, and he looks down at the letter. And sneezes.

* * *

><p><em>Dear Antonio,<em>

_Wow, it really has been a long time, huh? I was really surprised to get your letter! I'm fine, thank you. I don't really know what to say – eh, I have a lot of money now! I work for my father's company. You know, Roderich, the man who adopted me? Sorry if you don't remember him._

_I don't mind coming and visiting. Can you pick me up from the train station just before the town? If it's anything like it used to be, yeah, I wouldn't want to take the train all the way in. But don't worry! If you don't have a car right now I'm sure I'll find a way._

_I really haven't spoken to Romano. Haven't you? Did someone take him? I thought he'd try and keep talking to you; he always used to like you._

_Anyway, I'll uh, see you soon. Ludwig is telling me I'll be free for awhile after the 28th? So I guess that's when I'll go._

_Bye-bye!_

_Feliciano._


	2. Enter the Clowns

**Author's Notes:** On human names: Ano (Emiliano) = Ladonia, Mel (Melania) = Wy. And yes, they are both Italian here. *shrug*

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 2: Enter the Clowns<strong>

"What are you doing?"

"Ah!"

Ano is clearly shocked to see him and flails a bit at his entrance, although he does it pretty quietly. "You – I'm _spying_!" he says in a loud whisper. "Don't you know when people are spying, you're meant to be quiet?"

Peter just blinks at him. "What are you spying on?"

He peers around the door and sees Antonio, looking worried (and that like never happens). And with some weird guy standing there, grinning.

"Come on, Toni," says the man, lighting a cigarette. "It's been what, five years? All this time and you haven't scraped up a thing for us?"

"I – I wasn't expecting this," Antonio says, voice and hands shaking nervously. Peter gulps. Antonio _never_ gets nervous. "I promise you, I'll have the money in a couple of days, just long enough for –

"Someone to swoop in and save your ass?" the man chuckles. "Man, what do you do to your kids anyway? They keep coming back."

"What are you doing? Get out of the way!" Ano shoves Peter out of the way.

"Shh!"

"No, you shh! Our I'll shout your name, your full name, for everyone to hear! Including the creepy guy! And if it's your full name he can track you down and stuff!" Ano threatens.

"You can't even pronounce my name!"

"No-one can pronounce your name! You can't pronounce your name! It has some freaky English sound in it!"

"Hey, what's that?" the Creepy Man pauses taking a drag of his cigarette. "You got spies running about."

Peter and Emiliano both freeze.

A pause, and Antonio laughs – nervously, again. "Ah, a – a couple of the kids must have snuck out of bed! Boys, what are you doing still up?"

_Argh, he knows it's us,_ thinks Peter. They'll be in trouble for sure. "Sorry Toni – we just got hungry, that's all!"

It's awkward. _Really_ awkward. Ano jabs him in the ribs it's so awkward (though he might do that anyway). Antonio smiles up at the man, as false as Peter's ever seen him. "Ah, well, then I've got to attend to these two – will you excuse me?"

Peter holds his breath. Is Antonio going to get away with that? But sure enough, the man grins – like a wolf. "'Kay. You and your taking care of the kids. Just don't forget Toni, 'bout that deal we had – okay?"

"Sure thing, my friend." Antonio stands and shakes the man's hand as he walks out the door. Once the man is gone, he sighs. Then he turns that smile on the two boys. "Ah, how about we move this to the kitchen?"

* * *

><p>"So... what were you two doing up?"<p>

The two boys share an awkward look. "Um..." says Peter.

"We got hungry," says Ano. Peter's about to death-glare him for lying and being manipulative and stuff (and being actually good at it, unlike Peter), but that's technically true. For him in any case. He got up because he was hungry – and because he woke up and realised Ano had ran off somewhere, so he was curious. "We didn't mean to snoop... Sorry."

"What did you overhear?" asks Toni, frowning (will he stop that? It's seriously unsettling.)

"Nothing much," says Ano before Peter gets to be awkward again. "Who was that guy, anyway?"

Now Peter frowns. Why is Ano playing dumb? Even if they hadn't heard much (and really, Peter thinks they heard enough), Toni probably expects them to have figured it's something to do with _them_ – around this town, that's a kinda obvious conclusion. They both know that, and he's pretty sure Antonio _knows_ they know that... which is saying something, for Antonio. So why bother...?

There's a pause. And – finally – Antonio grins. "Oh, nobody. A nice man who gave me a loan, and was being fair and reasonable in trying to get it back. Nothing for you two to worry about?"

Peter and Ano share a look.

"Okay..."

"Does that mean there'll be zero money for the next week again?"

Toni pouts at him. Before this discussion can continue, however, a set of footsteps come down the stairs.

"...I heard talking? And it was three AM? ...Why, dammit?"

"Melania! What are you doing up?" Toni stands and puts his hands on his hips, and Mel, even very very groggy, raises an eyebrow.

"Everyone else is up; I wanted to know why. So shut up." She promptly collapses onto a chair.

"Tsk. That is no way for a young lady to speak, you know," Toni chastises her.

"I repeat, it's 3 AM. I can't be polite at 3 AM."

"Can you be polite ever?" asks Ano. Mel gives him a look that probably can't be expressed without using language Antonio probably wouldn't stand for. Even he has lines with the discipline thing... though not many.

Toni sighs. "None of you are going to go back to bed now, are you?"

"Well..."

"We're not tired anymore," says Ano quickly.

"Yeah, that's it!" Peter enthusiastically shouts (and he is not just copying now Ano's set the precedent, nuh-uh). "And... you're not going to let us, are you?"

They get a glare from Antonio, which is interrupted by a _thunk_ and a sound: "Zzzzzz..."

"Aww, how cute, Mel fell back asleep!" Toni ruffles her hair from where her head lies still on the table, and somehow, she manages to scowl through her sleep. Mel is scary like that. "I should take her back to her room – and yes boys, you do have to go back to sleep too."

"Awww!" the two say in sync.

A pause.

"...Can we at least draw on Mel's face while she's here and passed out?" asks Ano.

"No! That would be mean! And you'd probably wake her up and then she'd punch you!"

Peter is also disappointed by not getting to draw on Mel's face, but then again, she _would_ wake up and punch them. It's happened before.

Antonio scoops her up into his arms – which is no easy feat; Peter's tried before and she was _heavy_ (he told her that and she yelled at him. Girls are weird). "Come along now, boys," he says, sort of relying on the honour code for them to actually follow. But they do... for some reason.

Emiliano is scowling at him again. "This is all your fault!" he whispers.

"...Why? Wait – what's my fault?"

"..." Ano clearly doesn't know. "Shut up! You're annoying! And short!"

"I'm _taller than you_," Peter pokes out, poking Ano fiercely in the arm.

"DON'T FIGHT WHILE I'M SLEEPING."

Peter and Ano both jump at Mel's sudden yelling voice – gah, she's meant to be sleeping! The second she finishes, however, she squirms a little in Toni's arms and nods back off. Peter lets out a sigh of relief, and Antonio giggles at them all.

Ano kicks him in the back of the shin. "Still your fault."

"You have serious problems."

* * *

><p>"Hey, Ano? You still awake?"<p>

"No," says the grumpy voice from the other side of the room. "What do you want?"

"Why did you lie to Toni? About what we overheard?"

A pause. "...What do you mean?"

Peter shuffles around uncomfortably, trying to dig further into the warm covers of his bed. "It's just... You know, around this town, it's pretty _obvious_ what was going on. Don't you think he'd guess? Maybe we should have just told him what we heard..."

Ano snorts. "This is Antonio, remember? Guessing is not his strong-suit. Anyway, what are you thinking? You don't just _tell_ people what you know. You're gonna need it later."

Peter frowns. "Uh... I'm confused. This is Toni, remember? He's not exactly the type we have to trick and blackmail and stuff. He's the substitute father-figure, remember?"

He can _feel_ Ano rolling his eyes at him. "Sure, whatever. Where'd you put that teddy bear of yours anyway, since you clearly haven't outgrown–"

"You stole it last time there was a thunderstorm, wimp!" Peter glares and sticks out his tongue.

"WHAT DID I SAY ABOUT FIGHTING WHILE I'M SLEEPING?" comes Mel's yelling voice through the walls. They both jump. "...OR AT LEAST FIGHT CLEARLY ENOUGH I CAN ACTUALLY TELL WHAT YOU'RE SAYING."

There's a pause.

"Shut up, Mel," the boys say in sync.

* * *

><p>Antonio has to go the next day; apparently he's picking someone up from the train station. Peter can't help but be excited.<p>

"So, what do you think they'll be like?" he asks Ano while they're lying around outside.

Ano gives him a hazy look. "Who?"

Peter frowns. "Whoever Toni's picking up! You know!"

"...You actually care?" asks Ano, laughing. "Man, you're dumb."

"...No! I don't!" Peter tries really hard to think of how to defend himself. "You're dumb! I just thought _you_ might care, you know!"

Ano still laughs. _Hmph._ "Sure, kid. Sure."

"I'm older than you! But like five months! So _there_!"

They eventually settle into a annoyed (Peter)/amused (Emiliano) silence. Then, Peter's struck by another thought. "You don't think it's someone who wants to–"

"No."

Peter frowns. "Why not?"

"Because no-one ever does!" They _both_ seem annoyed now, and Peter wonders how Ano can always seem so cynical. "We're stuck here, okay? It'll be another six years and we'll leave, and we'll still be broke and stuck in this town, and I don't know, we'll do something. But nothing's gonna change, not really."

Peter wants to fight this argument (...somehow), but when he props himself up he sees something out of the corner of his eye.

The woman with the long blond hair, in pigtails, wearing a smart suit.

"Hey!" he calls out, suddenly jumping to his feet. He hears Ano grumbling behind him, but who cares?

"Wait! Wait up!" He runs after her as fast as his little legs can carry him, but she's all the way across the field and can move much quicker than him, even with her high heels. At the end of the field, he comes to a stop. She's long gone.

Ano approaches him from behind, while he's trying to get his breath back. "What, was that the weird woman following you around again?"

Peter doesn't say anything. Ano sighs.

"This is getting weird–"

"I'm not crazy!"

"...Didn't say that," says Ano. "I've seen her before, remember. Just... what does she want with you?"

Peter chooses not to try answering.


	3. Trains, Cars and Gasoline

**Chapter 3: Trains, Cars and Gasoline**

The scenery outside the town is still really pretty. Feliciano stares at it for most of the train ride, when he's not trying to make conversation with others – which doesn't really work, because when he tries people start running away. They probably think he wants to rob them. It makes sense; everyone's always really mistrustful around here and his clothes make him suspicious. Mostly because he looks like he actually has money, and around here that kind of always equals mafia.

Anyway, when he gets off the train he has a problem: where's Antonio, anyway? _He did remember to pick me up, right?_ He was always kinda silly...

"Ah! Feliciano!"

He looks around wildly, and sees a face grinning broadly at him from the other side of the station. A big wave soon follows, and Feliciano grins back.

"Toni!"

He rushes to the other side of the station and they embrace like it hasn't been years (and years and _years_!) since they last saw each other.

"Feli!" Antonio laughs against his ear, holding him tightly. "Ah, I'm not crumpling your suit, am I? And you look so smart, too!"

"It's fine!" Feliciano is giggling, and pulls back slightly. "Oh, it's been – how long has it been?"

"I haven't seen you since you were thirteen! You've gotten so big," says Toni.

"Ten years! Oh wow..." he coughs a little. "Ah, where is your car?"

"Huh? Oh, around back. I'll show you."

* * *

><p>They chatter excitedly through the car ride. Feli tells him about the family; Papa, Mama and Ludwig, and it feels funny talking to someone who doesn't already know all about them. Toni tells him about the town, and his life so far: there are three kids in the orphanage right now: Peter's still there, who Feli knew before he left. He guesses it's kinda sad no-one ever adopted him, but well, that doesn't actually happen too often now Feli thinks about it. Anyway, it will be nice to see another familiar face – not that it isn't nice to see Antonio! They talk like two old friends catching up, even if there's a bit of a backlog.<p>

"Oh... shoot," says Toni partway through their trip. Feli frowns.

"Ve, what's wrong?" he asks.

"Huh? Oh, nothing. The tank is running low... Hold on, there's a station in five minutes."

Feli nods and smiles and starts a conversation about pasta (his default subject, although it hardly ever works). Sure enough, in five minutes they pull in.

"Do you mind waiting in the car? It might get a bit hot."

"Ve, it's fine," Feli dismisses him. "Go! I want to get there quickly!"

Toni chuckles at him. "Okay then. I'll be back soon."

Feliciano smiles as Antonio gets out, fills up the car. Once Toni goes inside to pay he turns to staring out the window.

* * *

><p><em>This is not going to fucking end well,<em> Romano thinks as he watches Toni make small talk with the cashier. They're taking so fucking long, which he kinda expected given how he knows Antonio and all, but it kind of leaves him not knowing where to come in.

As soon as Toni's finished paying, Romano grabs him by the arm and pulls him aside. "Hel-fucking-lo, Antonio."

"Lo–"

"Shh! And don't call me that!" he snaps, and Toni just stares at him. For a second, he's struck dumb. _Idiot! Remember the mission!_ "We heard about who you're talking to."

"Your bro–"

"Shut up!" _Fuck, he's annoying._ "Anyway, I just got sent out to warn you: my bosses aren't happy about you getting help."

"I – surely they know I can't manage on my–"

"They don't really care. You defied their rule, and they wanna teach you a lesson. Not to mention, someone like Feli, with actual connections to people who mean shit to anyone? Yeah, that's not a presence they want around either."

"It – it's _Feli_. Lovi; he's harmless!"

"I told you not to call me that!" He's shouting, and probably scaring the cashier, but fuck it he doesn't stuff like that all the time. "And nobody gives a fuck about _him_, okay; they care about who he knows. I don't know, apparently his adoptive parents are really rich and important or some shit. That's all they care about."

"...And you?"

"Huh?" Romano's struck dumb by the question for a second. _Oh god, don't you even_– "...He left. Screw him."

"L – Romano..."

"Look, you just keep your head down, do as they say and you;ll be fine. Don't try being clever; god only knows how you'd manage that one..."

"Now you're just being mean..."

_Fuck, what is wrong with him?_ "Will you take me fucking seriously for once? I mean it, dammit! You do as they say or they will fucking kill you! And Feli too! So don't you try getting him to help you! Or – anyone!"

"..._You _were helping me–"

"Shut up!"

In a fit of rage, he slams Antonio up against the fridge. He's smaller, but he's stronger and has experience keeping people restrained, and when he looks in Toni's eyes the man is – frightened. Antonio's _scared_ of him.

_That's good. From any kind of practical perspective, that's good,_ but still when he looks in Toni's eyes it's... nevermind. _Remember how we wound up here, fuckhead,_ he tells himself and he slowly lets Antonio go.

"C-could I leave?" comes a shaky voice, and Romano's suddenly reminded that there is someone else here. "P-please; there's a back entrance where no-one would see me, and well, it;s better I leave now before I get... I promise I won't tell anyone, really, but I don't want to see – oh god, you're not going to–"

"I'm not planning on killing you!" Romano shouts at her, exasperated. "...Or him." Toni seems to cringe at the very idea, and Romano doesn't want to admit he has the urge to do the same. _Fuck you, Toni._ "But – but fine, go! If you meant what you said."

"T-thank you," she says and she scarpers away like a mouse.

"...Feli's right outside, you know."

Romano sighs and takes a step back. "I know." _Fucking goody-two-shoes brother; came running the second you called, right?_ Something like jealousy fills his gut, though it seems pretty vaguely directed for jealously. "Fuck... I don't want him to see me like this, okay?"

Antonio nods along, looking just like he did when Lov– when R_omano_ was a kid and had a nightmare. _Fucking bastard._

"Look, get out of here, go," he says. "He won't have seen me right? Then take him and keep it that fucking way. I have to wait til you go before I can leave, so hurry up."

"...Right." Spain tries to readjust himself, bring back that dopey grin. "So... do you think I look happy and oblivious? Like you always say I look?"

"Sure," Romano says. "Fuck it, it's Feli; he's not exactly hard to fool. Now get out already; your face is making me want to punch it. Remember what I said, okay?"

A pause, and Toni looks vaguely somber – for a second. "Okay," he says. "Well... goodbye then, Romano."

He sighs and pushes Antonio towards the door. "_Bye_, dammit."

* * *

><p>Spain grins as he gets back in the car. "Hi Feli! Sorry I took so long."<p>

"Huh? Oh, that's okay. Look, I found a cloud shaped like a kitty!"

"Really?" Spain peers up to look at it. "Hey, it does! Wow..."

They both stare at the cloud for a little longer. It's a silly thing to be distracted by, but it slightly calms his frazzled nerves. _No. You're not going to think about hat until you absolutely have to... You'll figure something out!_

"So, uh... should we be leaving soon?"

"Huh? Oh, right!" He turns to start the car, turning the key.

"Ve... Antonio, are you alright? Your hands are kind of... shaking?"

"What?" Indeed they are, which really doesn't help. "Oh right, sorry; they just kind of do that sometimes," he says. "I am getting old, you know."

"...Right." Feliciano doesn't sound entirely sold, but Antonio tries to put it out of his mind as they set off again.

_Don't worry. You'll figure something out. It'll be fine!_

_Absolutely no-one is going to die._


	4. Your Mission

**Author's Notes:** Hello everybody! Quick note: Guglielmo here is not any particular Hetalia character. He's just there. He shall be important later, though.

* * *

><p><strong>4: Your Mission, Should You Choose to Accept it<strong>

There's a knock on the door. That's weird, because Toni doesn't really bother knocking the door before entering his own house. He barely ever remembers to bother knocking the door before entering other people's houses, which can end awkwardly – though most people keep their doors locked around here, so it usually works out. That, or Mel has to kick him in the shin.

"I'll get it!" Peter leaps away to answer the door, while Ano grumbles about something or other because grumbling about something or other is what Ano does (and she is not being a hypocrite, shut up). "...Oh, it's you."

Antonio pouts. "Thank you for that. May we come in?"

_Huh?_ Mel hears an unfamiliar voice with Toni. "Ve, who is that? Is that one of your new people?" Toni laughs, like he always does, and Mel is getting seriously confused when Whoever It Is comes inside, grinning at Peter. "Heh, who are you?"

"...Peter," he says, sounding kind of shy given how okay he tends to be with that random woman stalking him. The Random Person's eyes go big.

"_Really?_ You've gotten so big! Wah, come here!"

"Feli!" calls Toni.

"Ah!" yells Peter as this "Feli" person grabs and hugs him, and it is left up to Mel to charge up and push him away.

"HEY. YOU. Who are you and what do you want with my friend?"

"Ve...?" Feli seems confused. "I'm Feliciano; I used to live here! You weren't there, but Peter remembers me, don't you Petey?"

"...No?" says Peter, and Mel narrows her eyes.

Antonio steps in, laughing nervously to defuse the situation (laughing is Toni's response to all situations). "Ah, sorry children; I should have introduced him properly, si? This is Feliciano. An old friend of mine. He did use to live here, and yes Peter you were there, but you were two so I understand that you may not remember him.

"...Right," says Peter, looking embarassed. Mel's still suspicious. "Uh, sorry!"

Feliciano grins again, and Mel can see why him and Toni are friends. "Ve, that's okay!"

"Alright," Mel says again. "But why is he _here_?"

"Toni invited me!" Feliciano says. "He said he needed me to help out with some sort of trouble..."

"Trouble? What kind of trouble?" says Ano from wherever he was observing the whole conversation.

"Toni, what happened?" asks Peter.

"Are we out of money?"

"Are we in danger?"

Antonio looks very, very uncomfortable. "Feli, did you really have to say that?" he whines. "Guys, it's... it's nothing. Feliciano is helping me out with my finances a little, that's all. It's nothing for you to worry about."

"So we are out of money!" declares Ano, and Mel is struck with the urge to slap him.

"Gah, no! Feli's just giving me a hand, that's all," says says Toni. "It's nothing to worry about, really. None of your business. Why don't you all go run along now? There's still a couple of hours before dinner..."

_He's distracting us,_ Mel thinks, but she sees Ano and Peter getting a look of resolve. _Oh for the love of god..._ it won't do any good if they fight to know what's going on; Antonio will just get angry, and he still won't tell them because he sees everything as protecting their 'innocence' or whatever. They'll just need to spy later on him. She is not letting the boys make Toni all suspicious about them snooping before she's found anything out. God, they're dumb.

"Alright, fine," she says, getting scandalised looks from Peter and Ano. She glares at them, and they shrink away, cowed. "We'll be in the meadow if you need us... just... shout if anything's up, alright?"

Toni gives her a confused look, and Peter and Ano, as is their response to everything, glare at each other (if they get into another fight, she will punch them both in the face).

"Come along, you two," she beckons them, making Peter scowl at her.

"What do you think we are, sheep?"

"Yup. Exactly. _Baa, baa_." He's still scowling, but Ano laughs at him, but they both follow her out anyway.

It's a pity she can't hear what Feliciano and Toni say to each other after that, but she'll figure it out later anyway.

* * *

><p>There's a few moments silence after the children leave, and both Antonio and Feli stand around, wondering what to say.<p>

"...Well that was awkward," offers Feli.

Antonio laughs it off. "Ah, sorry Feli. I was stupid and forgot to warn them you'd be coming! Sorry... but they were asleep this morning, and I couldn't wake them up..."

Feliciano nods. "Right," he bites his lip. "So, uh... What is this about?"

Antonio's smile doesn't fade for a second. "What?"

Feli looks very uncomfortable, avoiding Toni's eye like a guilty child. "Well... I realised when they were asking, I don't really know _why_ I'm here. What you want from me. Are you going to tell...?"

"Uh..." Antonio suddenly coughs awkwardly. "Ah, right." _How can I say this in a way where he'll actually do it?_ "We should... probably move to my study, if that's alright with you?"

Feliciano nods, obviously attempting a Serious Face. It's so adorable Antonio wants to pinch his cheeks, but he decides that probably wouldn't help.

Feli follows him to the study, and Toni stares down at his absurdly messy desk. Feli probably thinks he's looking for something, but really he's just avoiding looking at Feli.

"Sooo... What's going on."

Toni winces. _This can't end well..._

"I – I need money."

He spins around so he can see Feli's reaction. The man looks a little confused. "...Oh."

"I – Wait, let me rephrase that!" _Please don't think badly of me, please!_ "I don't want you to – it's not just that you have money now and I want to exploit that. Really! It's just... some stuff's happened lately and I can't, I can't make payments, and you know we only ever had enough to keep ourselves afloat –

"Are they asking for more?"

Antonio gives him a quizzical look. "Huh?"

"You know. _Them_." Feli tries to smile at him, which doesn't really work, but bless him. "They want you to – uh, pay more? For 'protection'?"

Toni stops himself wincing. _You're really stupid,_ he tells himself. "Y-yes. I'm sorry, Feli..."

"Ve, it's okay!" And Feli is grinning again and it's Antonio's turn to be confused. "Of course I'll pay for you!"

"Wait, Feliciano – thank you, but – I can't just ask you–"

"You're not asking." A pause. "Well, actually you are. But even if you weren't, I'd still offer. Because – I remember you, okay?" Toni's still confused. "Ve... after what happened to my father, you – you took care of us. And I think you're still doing the same thing. Those three kids I saw before? Uh, maybe I'm wrong... but I think they love you." And finally, Toni starts to get it. He smiles back. "And, ve, if they love you as much as we did... Then no-one can ever take you away from them, not ever, I won't let that happen."

"...Thank you, Feli." Antonio has to wipe his eyes because he is kind of soppy at heart, but it doesn't matter.

Feli suddenly seems puzzled. "Although, ve... Papa won't be happy..."

Antonio's mind is suddenly struck with realisation. _Oh no. Why didn't I think of that? I can't let him..._ "Uh, Feliciano?"

The boy shrugs. "Well, he doesn't like me spending a lot, he really doesn't like me spending a lot without telling him why, and if I spend a lot without telling him why regularly he might shut the piano lid on my head."

Toni cocks his head to the side. "He owns a piano?"

"Ve, yes? Papa plays piano really well! But I was kidding, by the way, and it's not really relevant."

_That isn't really surprising,_ thinks Antonio. "Oh... Uh, I wouldn't want to make things difficult for you with your family – Don't worry about it! Papa's just weird about stuff."

Feli pulls a face, but Toni doesn't feel much better. "...So are you planning on hiding it from him or?"

"Ve, probably. I'll just tell him I did something silly at work and had to take a pay cut as punishment. He'll believe it."

"...Can you tell I feel really guilty about this?" Toni laughs. _Come on. Isn't this what you wanted?_

Feli giggles a little. "I noticed," he says. "Anyway, I'll just take out some money when I get payed, and... should I give it straight to them?"

Antonio's eyes go wide. "Ah, no! Please! I... Right, they shouldn't know you're helping me. So you'd have to give the money to me, so they wouldn't think I was... cheating them." _Argh, now you sound like a blatant con man!_ "Actually, you should only give me about half. That will stop us running out of money, but it'll still look like I'm struggling and they'll be happy. They want to teach me a lesson, I think, that's why they–"

Toni cuts himself off and swallows deeply. He stares at Feliciano, who looks confused again.

"...Ve? Antonio? Are you okay?"

"Huh?" Toni shakes himself out of it (_Feli can't ever know that_). "Oh, I'm fine. Just thinking. So, uh, have we agreed on that plan?"

"In-_deed_." Feli nods decisively and sticks his hand out for Toni to shake. Antonio has to struggle not to giggle. _He's so cute!_ Nonetheless, they shake hands and it is decided.

"Now, ve, that's enough of that. I'll make you some pasta!"

"Ah, you're meant to be my guest, Feliciano!" But he doesn't try too hard to stop the boy. Pasta is good. Pasta is good and it's nice to have someone try and take care of _him_ again.

* * *

><p>"...Why?"<p>

Guglielmo rolls his eyes. "He needs to learn his lesson. You're the best way of doing that – we both know how he feels about you. Look, I don't give a shit about where the money comes from and neither does anyone above me. But we can't let him know that, or the second he saves up the cash he'll make his way out. We have to keep him scared." Romano keeps scowling, and Guglielmo leans it. "Hey, don't you look at me like this. It's your fault this is happening anyway. Now, if you wanna redeem yourself and keep out of trouble, I suggest you do as I say."

A pause. Romano still scowls.

..._Fucking bastard. Why do I even care so much?_

"Fine. So I just have to give your stupid letter to one of his kids? Whatever. Why not straight to him, though?"

Guglielmo smirks. "You know what I said about frightening him? Those brats are his world. You don't have to do much, just scare one of them a bit – you'd probably need to do that to make 'em _give_ him the note – and he will panic. Implied threats work really well; I though you'd know that already."

"I'm the guy who pulls the trigger, not goes up saying he will," Romano says. "You're a sadistic piece of shit, you realise?"

Guglielmo shrugs. "I'm efficient. You could learn from me."


	5. Mixed Messages

**Author's Notes:** Hello everybody! This chapter is kinda long... I mean, compared to some chapters it's nothing, but by my incapable-of-normal-attention-span standards it's kinda eternal-void-like. Anyway, human names: Rose here is Fem!England. Yes, I have a feeling people won't be happy about me genderbending England, but the plot told me too. *shrug*

Also - please review if you have the time! I know it can be a pain, but I really do love hearing what you guys think!

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 5: Mixed Messages<strong>

So, Antonio can't afford to host him in a room while he's here.

"I'm sorry Feliciano! It's just – well, we don't really have a spare bed... I know we used to, but I, uh, had to sell it... I don't really know where you'll go; the hotels are, um..."

"It's okay!" says Feliciano, grinning. "I'm sure someone will have a spare room!"

"True!" But Antonio's smile quickly falls. "Wait, what's to stop them being in with the Mafia too?"

Feli frowns. _He has a point, ve_. "Well... nothing really. _But_, if I'm staying with just a person and not something actually organised, chances are they might leave me alone."

"Really?"

He shrugs. "Well, even if whoever I'm staying with _does_ work for them, as long as I keep my head down they probably won't care. I'll be out of here pretty fast, I think. And, with my family and all, attacking me would be... kinda a bad plan. And really, what reason do they have to attack _me_? I don't even live here!"

Feliciano thinks he's made a pretty good case, and Antonio will see that. Toni doesn't look like he does. He winces, then falls silent.

"Ve...? Toni? Are you okay?"

"Hmm? Oh, I'm fine Feliciano!" Toni suddenly snaps back to their conversation with a smile that seems way too wide for what's going on. "And... you might be right. But what about you giving me money?"

"We're hiding that, remember?" Feli has to chuckle. "Silly Toni. Anyway, I'll probably wait until I get back to Milan before I start regularly sending–"

"What if they see–"

"I'll send it under a friend's name, to a false address you can pick it up at. I'm not stupid, Toni." The man still looks troubled. "...What? Oh no, did I do something wrong?"

"Of course not, Feli!" Toni protests. "It's just – oh god, I shouldn't have dragged you into this–"

"Now don't you start!" Feliciano puts on his resolve face. "Now I told you I was going to help you. Because you _need_ help, and you deserve it. And nothing you say will change my mind."

Slowly, Toni's features give way to a smile. "Oh, I really did miss you. Hug me!" Feliciano enthusiastically leaps into his arms, and grins. "You're so... _good_. Such a good person. I forgot what that was like. Can you promise me something?"

"...What?" asks Feli, pulling back.

"Never change. No matter what happens here, you'll still be – you'll be bright, and happy, and believe and all that. Please?"

"Okay!" Feli says without a second thought. "Now, do you know where people are most likely to have a spare room... and least likely be in the Mafia?"

"Um... Ah, actually, there's a couple a few streets away who have some money... The woman, Rose her name is; she has family in England who are rich or something. And her fiance – he's a businessman, internationally, and given how much he says about the Mafia I don't _think_ he's part of them. I don't see why he'd need to be."

"Oh. Okay," says Feli, lips pursed. "Well that's alright then!"

Antonio smiles. "Here, I'll give you the address. Just – just don't trust them completely, okay? It's still _this_ town, after all..."

* * *

><p>"So Feliciano has gone... where?"<p>

"Switzerland," Ludwig says calmly. "Some sort of business preposition. He said he'd be back in a few weeks, though he was rather vague about it all. You know Feliciano."

Vater sighs and sips his coffee. "I really do not like that boy conducting business on his own..."

_Then why did you put him so high up in the company?_ thinks Ludwig, but he keeps his mouth shut. Like their entire business isn't built purely on caring for those closest.

"Why didn't you accompany him?"

Ludwig has to blink. "Sorry?"

"Why didn't you accompany him to Switzerland? You do often look out for him, after all."

"I..." _I didn't want to get involved; I would be utterly _lost_ in that town and most likely get myself killed, not to mention I doubt Feliciano would have let me come if I asked._ "He told me not do."

"Really?"

Ludwig winces. "He doesn't like feeling so helpless, Vater. He knows you only wants what's best for him, but... he needs to live his own life one day, take some responsibility. He knows it. I certainly know it. I think you do too."

A pause. Vater stares at him with a cool glare, and Ludwig forces himself to maintain eye contact. He can't be sure of everything he just said: he's gotten that impression from Feliciano, certainly, but Feli would never be the kind to confirm it out loud. He's too _nice_. In any case, it almost certainly has nothing to do with why we left – it's just the first explanation Ludwig thought of.

"I see," says Vater calmly, sipping coffee again. "I suppose I'll have to speak with him about that when he gets back. Thank you for telling me."

"I..." The awkward moment is interrupted by a very unexpected voice.

"Oi, kid! You in here?"

_Father?_ Thinks Ludwig before he's being accosted by a pair of arms, which belong to a man are laughing stupidly at him. _Yep, that's him._

"Hey, Luddy! Bet ya weren't expecting to see me, huh?"

"No, I wasn't." Ludwig allows the hug for awhile, and smiles. "What are you doing here?"

Father seems almost offended. "Hey, what excuse do I need to come see you? You should be more appreciative of your old man!"

"I'm sorry," Ludwig is still smiling slightly, and Father ruffles his hair.

"Aww, ain'tcha cute? You've gotten so big too..."

"I am the exact same weight and height as last time you saw me," Ludwig points out. "I am twenty-two years old; I'm not a growing adolescent."

"You'll always be a kid to me, brat, don't you forget it."

This touching moment is interrupted by a sigh from the doorway. _Oh god, Mama, please don't..._

"Sorry, Roderich, I... didn't know he was coming," she says, soundiung amiable but with rather tense undertones. Ludwig struggles not to slap his forehead.

_Well, this will end well._

"Oi, don't sound so moody Liz! Luddy's happy to see the awesome me, right kid?"

"...Indeed," Ludwig says awkwardly, just before Vater and Father make eye contact (if he were anyone else, his family would be extremely confusing). He sighs. _And things just keep getting better_.

Vater remains as dispassionate as before. "Gilbert. Hello," he says, coolly.

Father nods a long. "Roderich. Hey." And everything has suddenly become extremely quiet and awkward.

"Alright, well, now you're here–" Ludwig is trying to take over the conversation so passive-aggressive fights become less likely to break out, "–we should probably get you something to eat. To the kitchen?"

"Awesome," Father comments and Ludwig happily leads him out.

* * *

><p>Feliciano frowns as he rings the doorbell a second time. <em>Did I get the address right?<em> He peers down at the scrap of paper Antonio gave him. _Ve, Toni has terrible handwriting_.

Suddenly, he hears footsteps rushing at the door. "I'm coming, I'm coming!" calls a male voice, and when the door swings open there's a bright but exhausted grin looking at him. "Hey! ...Who are you?"

Feli's a little taken aback by this man. He has blond hair, bright blue eyes, and his smile is terrifying looking. No-one should naturally have teeth that white. "Ah – ah, hello, Mr. Jones isn't it? I'm so sorry, but a friend of mine recommended you, so..."

"Alfred, what are you doing? The person will still be here; there's no need to run!" A pretty woman in high heels (looking quite a bit older than Alfred, if he's honest) comes down the hallway, two tails on either side of her head. She appraises Feli as he stands in the doorway. "Ah, hello, I don't think we've met." She turns quickly to her fiance, and tries to smooth his messy hair. "Alfred? Who is this?"

"That's what I'm trying to figure out Rosie." He knocks her hands away and she rolls her eyes. By way of apology, he sneaks his arm around his waist and kisses her on the cheek. She grumbles a little, but doesn't push him away.

_They're so cute!_ thinks Feli, but he realises that may not be the best way to introduce himself.

"Anyway, he was about to tell me why he's here. Weren't you, Mr...?"

"Huh? Oh, Edelstein. Feliciano Edelstein."

Rose frowns slightly. "That name seems familiar somehow..."

"Oh, my father's really rich, ve," he says, and coughs awkwardly. "Anyway, I just needed somewhere to stay for a few days – maybe a week, I don't know – and, well, my friends said you would have a spare room; his name is–"

"Why can't you just stay at a hotel?"

"Rosie!" cries Alfred.

Rose gives him a look. "What?" She turns back to Feliciano. "I'm sorry, but if you have the appropriate money I don't see why you'd need to stay here, rather than... I'm not trying to be rude, or even saying we don't want you here; it's just a little confusing, that's all."

Feliciano meets Alfred's gaze, who looks a little uncomfortable. _She must not have been here for long_, he thinks, frowning.

"Um... I don't like the hotels around here, that's all. The people there are... weird."

She snorts. "Well that I can agree with." She smiles, and beckons him to come in. "You'll have to pay, of course. But if you do – and we can be quite reasonable, I think you'll find – I see no reason we can't give you a place to stay; we have the room. That's okay with you, right Alfred?"

He nods along. "Yeah, sounds awesome," he says. "Welcome to the family, Mr. Feliciano!"

"Ve, thank you!"

* * *

><p>"Mel, give me juice," whines Ano.<p>

"You are such a brat." She rolls her eyes, but hands it to him anyway.

"Like you're not!"

"Ano! That is no way to talk to a lady!" With a pout, he turns to Mel. "I apologise for him. He's – OWW!"

"Don't talk like that. It's creepy," she says, shaking her hand from punching him in the knee (because his knees are hard and bony. Most knees are like that, she supposes).

"Haha," says Ano, pointing.

Peter sticks his tongue out and Mel looks up at the setting sun. "We should probably get home soon. It's getting dark."

"Goody-goody," says Ano.

"I don't like being alone, at night, in the middle of a field, being twelve years old, in _this_ town if that's what you mean."

There's an awkward pause. _Oh for the love of god..._ "Yeah, you're probably right," says Peter. _Thank you_. "Come on, Ano! I'll race you home!"

"You're on!" They're both jumping to their feet, racing to go, and she scowls.

"OI!" She indicates the food on their rug. "And what about all this?"

A pause. Peter and Ano make eye contact.

"Loser has to clean the other's room for the next month?"

"Deal!"

And they're off!

"COME BACK HERE YOU TWO YOU ARE HELPING ME WITH THIS YOU STUPID MORONS – ARGH!" They're out of eye sight and she sighs, annoyed.

"AND YOU HAVE THE SAME ROOM ANYWAY!"

With a scowl, she turns to all the food. _Great, now I have to put it all away alone... We really brought too much._ She goes about, wrapping up sandwiches and putting things back in containers, throwing rubbish out, but there really is a lot. She's barely halfway through and it's suddenly gotten very dark.

_Why does the sun always set quickly when you don't want it to,_ she thinks, and jumps when she hears a twig snap.

_Oh no. You are not going to be like Ano, and his whimpering whenever there's a storm. You are not going to get scared just because it's dark. You are going to put all this stuff away, and go home, and give those two hell for leaving you here. So there._

She keeps collecting food and trying to figure out how she's going to carry all this on her own. Then, as she's grabbing hold of some biscuits near a bush, something happens.

There's a hand over her mouth and one around her waist, holding her so tight she can't escape no matter how she squirms.

So she screams.

"Shut the fuck up!" snarls the voice that's holding her; she can't see him, but she can tell it's a man and it's no-one she knows, not some stupid practical joke. She screams so much her throat hurts, and when that doesn't work she bites and kicks. She's nothing if not scrappy. But he pulls his arm in, and he's _strong_, and she thinks he might suffocate her. She shuts up.

"Look, I don't wanna hurt you," he says, and he actually sounds genuine. Weird. "But you've gotta take me seriously, you understand? If you don't do what I say, I'll give you all sorts of trouble, okay?"

Mouth still smothered by his hand, she nods.

He gives an aggravated sigh. "Take this."

He's forcing a scrap of paper into her hand, and from this angle she can't see at all what it is (it feels like it's scrunched up anyway). "You give that to Toni – to that man you live with, okay? Don't read it, just carry it to him. He'll get it, no matter how fucking oblivious he is..."

_You know him,_ she thinks just as the man (who she still can't see) digs his nails into her side warningly. "Do you get that? Do you agree?"

She nods frantically, and slowly his grip lessens. She clasps the strip of paper tightly, still not looking at it, still too scared to move.

He swallows hard. "Good."

Then he pushes her away and runs, leaving her alone and scared in the dark, with a strip of paper that's majorly important but she doesn't know anything about, and she can't read.

She's still too scared to move.

* * *

><p>Halfway through the race (Ano's winning, oh no!) they hear a scream.<p>

They both go still.

"...That sounds like Mel," says Peter.

They stare back at where they were picnicking, far covered by bushes and the dark, as the scream stops.

"...We should go back."

"Don't be stupid," says Ano. "If someone's hurting Mellie, we'll only be next."

"We can't just leave her!"

"If we go back she's in more danger!" Ano flails his arms widely. "Look, they're probably not gonna kill her; there's no reason to! They probably just wanna send a message. Probably literally. But if someone shows up looking for her, _that's_ when they'll panic and god knows what will happen then. Just _wait_, Peter."

"So what, you're just gonna leave her? Hope for the best?" Peter stares in shock. "There is something wrong with you!"

"I'm _smart_, and I want to survive."

"I don't care what you say, I'm going back! MEL! ARE YOU OKAY?"

"What are you–" Ano says as Peter heads off, running for his life (but panting from their race before, dammit!) "–wait up! I'm coming with you to find her too! MEL!"

When they do get back there, Mel is curled up, shaking. She has a piece of paper in her hand. But she's alone.

"Oh god, Mel! Are you okay?" Peter immediately starts fretting, brushing her hair aside so he can see her face. She's not crying, and she doesn't seem injured, but she still looks... off. She's not scowling, for once.

"Oh jesus..." Ano appears and starts collecting the food, wrapping it all in the rug as a makeshift sack, observing Mel and Peter at a foot's distance. "Is she okay?"

"Shh!"

Mel gives her sarcastic laugh, and Peter can't help but be relieved. _There she is._ "I'm fine, guys," she says. "Thanks for leaving me to pack up on my own, by the way."

"We heard you scream," says Ano, as Peter quickly, but sneakily, tries to check and make sure she's not injured anywhere.

Mel shivers slightly. "There was – a man. I'm pretty sure he was one of _them_." The paper in her hand crunches. "He gave me this; told me to give it to Toni – not to read, I can't read it, or he'll – he'll hurt me – I'm scared guys, I don't know why–"

"Hey, shh Mellie; it's okay, it's okay!" Peter pulls her in close and strokes her hair, trying to comfort her. Above them, Ano has pulled the sack/picnic rug over his shoulder, and is staring while looking utterly lost. Peter glares at him. _See why we needed to come back for her?_

"Come on Mel, let's get you home," says Ano, giving Peter a nod of his head. "Get her up."

Mel manages to regain her composure, and snorts. "I'm not injured; I can stand just fine on my own." And she does, although Peter keeps a hand on her shoulder just in case (but he may be doing it for his own sake more than hers now). "But yeah... Home sounds good. Let's go."


	6. Losing Touch

**Chapter 6: Losing Touch**

Toni's worried. Feliciano is worried with him, but he's also dizzy, because Toni keeps moving.

"Ve, please stop; you're making me dizzy."

"Hmm? Oh, sorry." Toni smiles and goes still, only to start fidgeting instead. Feli sighs and gives up. "I just... It's not like they've _never_ been out this late, but..."

"It's scary," Feli concludes, frowning. "But you still let them out?"

"Well, not like _this_. They're in serious trouble when they get home!" Toni's grin falters quickly, though. "But... well I could never keep them in anyway. Have you met them? They're worse than Lovi–"

He cuts himself off after saying that name, which makes Feli blink in confusion. He looks pained. Why? Okay, maybe they don't know where Lovino is, but that's no reason to act like he never existed; there's no guarantee anything bad happened to him and until there is–

Then Feliciano's thoughts are cut off too, because suddenly he hears the girl's voice again. "Let go of me! I'm not injured!" She seems to be striding in, and Feliciano grins in relief, but when he gets a better look at her she seems... shaky. Like something happened to her. _Oh no_.

The boys enter behind, carrying their picnic stuff and both looking worried and tired. Feli frowns. What happened?

Toni gives him a small look, before he turns to his charges. "And where do you think you've all been?" he asks, hands on hips. Mel's bossy act immediately falters, as she starts stumbling over an explanation.

"W-we just–"

"A Mafia guy attacked Mel!"

Feli gasps at Peter's proclamation. _No! Not Mel!_ ...He's not really surprised, that one of them would attack a child – it happens all the time – but it still seems unfair. Ano is death-glaring the other boy. "Well, that was smart," he mutters, getting a confused look from Peter.

Toni looks stricken, and Mel avoids his eye. "Mel? What happened?"

A pause. Then Mel straightens her spine, gives an affected sigh. "_Attacked_ is overstating it," she says. "He just... grabbed me. He let me go like a minute later!"

Toni doesn't look reassured. "For what? What did he do to you, Mel? Why did he need to grab you?"

Mel looks away again, and Feli leans forward. _What is going on?_

"Tell him, Mel," whispers Peter, who gets whacked in the ribs by Ano for his trouble. "Oww."

Toni's eyes briefly flicker to Peter, before they come back to Mel. She reluctantly faces him again. "...He gave me a note, okay?"

She pushes a scrunched up piece of paper at him, looking glad to be rid of the thing. "He told me to give it to you, and that I wasn't allowed to look at it myself, okay? So if it turns out to be some kind of creepy death threat, don't go blaming me."

Antonio frowns and unfolds it as quick as he can. He skims it, and as he does he only looks more and more worried. Feliciano stands up and moves towards him.

"Ve? Toni, what is it?"

"Huh? Oh, nothing!" Toni pushes the note behind himself way too quickly, and plasters on a fake grin. Feli frowns. He's hiding something.

"Can I see?" Maybe it's none of his business, but he is going to be the one paying the Mafia for him, so he has a right to know what's going on doesn't he? Besides. He's worried.

"Feliciano..." says Toni as Feli comes closer. "...I really don't think you wanna read this..."

"It's okay Toni, I can handle..." _I watched my dad be stabbed to death when I was eight years old; I can handle a scary note._ He holds out his hand for Toni to give it to him, but Toni doesn't. Feli sighs and looks at Mel, but she just shrugs.

"I told you, I don't know what's in it."

Toni looks like he's backed into a corner (though they're standing in the middle of the room). "Feli – can you just trust me? Look, I _know_ you won't want to read that and–"

Antonio starts gesturing in the middle of his sentence and Feliciano takes advantage to yank the paper out of his hand. "Feliciano!"

He quickly starts reading.

_We know Feli's in town, and he's giving you the money to pay them. They don't care, but we don't want you to know they don't care. My boss wants to make sure you're cowed, scared of us. Keep Feli's money secret or there'll be trouble._

– _Lovino_

"Feliciano!" Antonio steals the note back, but it's too late. Feli looks up at him, shell-shocked. He feels like he's about to cry.

"...You said you hadn't heard from him recently," he says. "Or is this him getting back in touch after awhile?"

"I–" Toni doesn't answer fully, and it looks like he's about to cry too.

"Toni, give that back to me?"

Slowly, Toni hands over the piece of paper. Feliciano gulps and scans it.

"...We. He says we. Is he...?"

Antonio winces. "Yes."

"Did you know? Before this?"

"Of course."

"...Why didn't you tell me that?" he asks. "Did you think I wouldn't care?"

"No, of course not, I just–"

"How could you let him in the first place? You were meant to be taking care of him!"

Toni balks. "He – He didn't exactly ask me for permission, Feli! He turned eighteen and he left! What was I meant to do?"

"You could have stopped him! He would have listened to you, ve."

"When did Lovi ever listen to anyone?" He has a point there. "Look... Feli. I didn't know, okay?"

"You just said–"

"I only found out a few months ago. When – when _they_ decided they'd left me alone too long. And he... I don't know."

Silence. Feliciano sniffles, but resists the urge to cry, because he's doing the confrontation thing here. He hears Ano ask Peter what's going on, but Peter shushes him.

"So why _didn't_ you tell me?"

"Huh?"

"He's my brother! I had a right to know!" Feliciano's attempts to not cry aren't working very well by this point, but nevermind. "How could you just not tell me that?"

"I just – I _knew_ how you'd react, and how much it'd hurt you, and I thought–"

"You thought I wouldn't give you money? If I was angry because you let my brother join the fucking Mafia?"

"Feliciano!" And for a second it feels like Toni will admonish him for swearing. "Don't – don't be paranoid! That doesn't even make sense! I didn't want to hurt you, that's _all_; believe me I'm as hurt as you are by–"

"Stop! Stop it Toni!" He's sobbing wildly now, shaking his head. "I – I have to go! Goodbye!"

He storms away, making Mel jump when he rushes past her. Toni tries to call out to him, but he doesn't stop.

* * *

><p>Antonio retreats to his room after that, and they all decide it's a good idea to just leave him alone. Mel thinks she hears crying, though the other two don't seem to notice it.<p>

"...So what was that all about?" asks Ano.

She has to shrug. She has no idea what it's about, other than there's some guy called Lovi who is apparently Feliciano's brother, and he used to live here, and apparently he was the one who grabbed her. Maybe she should be more kind about it all, but she's still shook up.

"It's about Lovino," mumbles Peter.

Ano blinks. "Great. Now we know what that's short for," he says. "Who _is_ he?"

Peter rolls his eyes. "He used to live here. He was really mean; I avoided him when I could. I'm not that surprised he'd join the Mafia," he says, and Ano furrows his brow. "I don't remember him that well, though. He left when I was seven!"

"That wasn't _so_ long ago. It's been less than half of your life!" Ano points out.

Peter glares at him. "'Less than half my life' isn't really short, you know."

"Can we not with the pointless bickering? We'll – or I'll – just have to get Toni to sort it out, which may not be such a good plan tonight."

They both seem appropriately cowed. Peter shakes his head. "Look, I need to go to the bathroom, okay?" And he charges off.

"...Do you think we annoyed him?" Ano asks.

"You always annoy him. You both annoy each other. And me. I think if this changed the world might collapse," she says, leaning against the doorframe. "So, Toni's involved with some Mafia guy? This isn't going to end well, is it?"

"Nope," says Ano. "Hey, why do you think this Lovi guy is writing letters to Toni anyway?"

Mel shrugs. "I dunno. Guess he has nostalgic feelings for the old place? I mean, it is Toni. It'd be pretty hard to hurt him, even for the Mafia, right? He's like a puppy."

Ano frowns. "It seems stupid. If I was in the Mafia, I wouldn't risk it all for – I mean, would you?"

Mel scoffs. "Us in the Mafia; that is a terrifying image. We'd spend too much time yelling at each other and our hostages would run away."

"I'm going to join them one day, you know."

She's not sure how to react for a few seconds. Then she laughs.

"I'm not sure they'd let you in, Ano; you'd come in attacking their decision then hide under the table when..." she trails off at the look on his face. "...Oh god you're serious."

Silence. Then she snaps.

"Are you out of your mind? They're the Mafia; that is not a good career option. One – they kill people. Two – everything else they do is illegal too! 3 – You're still scared of thunderstorms. 4 – like ninety percent of them end up dead!"

"As opposed to the ninety-five percent of the rest of us," he stares. "Oh, and given what the police around here are like I don't think the legality thing matters too much, if you're worried about me getting caught. And I am not scared of thunderstorms!"

"I've heard you whimpering, you so are." Pause. "But that's not the point! Jesus, Ano, why would you even _want_ to do that?"

"Well what are you gonna do?"

"Huh?"

"You heard me." She heard him, but that doesn't mean the question makes any goddamn sense. "I mean, when we're adults and have to make money and stuff. What are you going to do?"

"Um, get a job? Marry someone? Literally _anything but join the Mafia_?"

"Okay. Where will you work? Or your husband? They control all the businesses."

"That's not true–"

"It is, or close enough. You can't escape them, Mel. We're all gonna wind up serving them, so I'm gonna get as high in the ranks as I can."

...He _has a point_. He has a deranged sociopathic point, but a point nonetheless, based purely on survival factor. But: "Peter would freak."

Ano scoffs and crosses his arms over his chest. "See how I care?"

"Hey – I know you two fight a lot but–"

"Mel. Peter's an idiot, okay? He's an idealist. He thinks if he keeps doing the right thing, he can get through life somehow. Hint: he's wrong."

And as if on call, Peter reappears, whistling cheerfully. Mel steps away from Ano like she was doing something wrong, which is stupid because Ano's the one who's gone weird. Peter seems to notice this, though. "I'm baaack – Hey, what's wrong?"

"Nothing, stupid!" she snaps, making him roll his eyes at her. "We were just talking!"

Ano sighs. "What she said, but without all the yelling."

Peter chuckles, and Mel glares at him. "Okay then. So, do you wanna play cards? We have to do _something_ fun; this day's been awful!"

"I'll totally beat you," says Ano.

"You wish! Just let me get the cards!" Peter races, and Ano goes after him with a cackle. Mel thinks.

She shakes her head.

Ano's always saying stupid dramatic stuff. He's said he was running away to join the circus a few times – despite the circus having never come to town, which kinda made that less believable. Ano wants to be smarter than them, one step ahead of the game, which usually ends up with him being whiny instead. So yeah, Ano's just being stupid.

Her boys always are.


End file.
